


A Beautiful Day To Save Lives

by The_Renegade



Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Angst, Based on Grey's Anatomy, Blood, Crash Landing, Doctor - Freeform, Doctor/Patient, Doctors, F/M, Falling In Love, Fight Sex, Fights, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Hospitals, I know nothing about medicine, Love, Love Triangles, Medicine, Oral Sex, Read, Rough Sex, Seattle, Seattle Grace Hospital, Sex, Surgery, Wakes & Funerals, Weddings, im trying guys, lots of blood, the struggle is real
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-07 13:56:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11060415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Renegade/pseuds/The_Renegade
Summary: When plastic surgeon Ophelia Sloan's older brother Mark dies, Ophelia finds herself in Seattle, WA, a place she ran away from a long, long time ago. When the hospital offers her a job, she can't help but say no, if only to keep the memory of her brother alive and well.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at Grey's Anatomy Fanfiction, so please please let me know if there's anything I can improve!

Ophelia closed her eyes, taking a deep, shaky breath. Funerals usually didn't get to Ophelia. Being a doctor, she was used to death. But there was a little something different about the funeral being for her older brother. She opened her eyes and saw the grey colour of the headstone, and her eyes traced the name: Mark Sloan. She squeezed her eyes shut again, and felt someone's hand slip into her's and squeeze her palm gently. 

It had been a few weeks ago when she had landed at the SEATAC airport, small carry-on in tow. It had been Derek who picked her up in his shiny, black SUV. He had hugged her outside the car. "Ophelia," he said, with one of his sad, yet beautiful smiles, the kind he had perfectly practiced, "It's been too long. What? Three years now?" 

"Three too many," She had replied with a soft smile, as he loaded her suitcase and opened the door for her. It was true. She should have visited more often. More than ever, she felt like she should have visited more often. 

When Mark had gotten into the plane crash, she had hopped onto the first flight out of New York. Two days later she had received a call from work, which she denied. Four more calls later she answered, told them she was taking a leave of absence from her position as a plastic surgeon, just like her brother, and hadn't called them back since. 

It was Derek and Meredith who took her to Mark's room. When she saw him, it was like her feet stopped. There he was, her brother, her big brother, with his salt and pepper grey hair, his smooth skin, with tubes and wires running everywhere. Of course, she knew exactly what each did, and why it was vital. And why it meant that he was still very much in need of medical attention. There was another young surgeon sitting in a chair, one foot propped up on his opposite knee, with soft, curly black hair and skin like caramel chocolate, asleep with his head propped up. Another doctor in blue scrubs and a lab coat, with beautiful, raven coloured hair sat on the opposite side. She looked up when she saw a presence behind the glass. 

And that time, it was Meredith, Meredith who had never met the young, shaking plastic surgeon before, Meredith who had barely said a word, and would possibly forget her name by the end of the day, who took her hand, squeezed it softly, and led her into the room, to sit down next to two strangers who didn't know her, maybe didn't know of her, but knew how sad she was, and quite possibly loved her brother as much as she did. Ophelia would never be more grateful in her life. 

Ophelia sat there, for days, as doctors came and went. She heard their private conversations, she heard them talk to her brother as if he were alive, but she couldn't bring herself to speak more than a "hello," to anyone. And after a while, a few of them started talking to her. 

Callie Torres was the doctor with the black hair. "I'm an Ortho God, I break bones and I love it," she said as she was introducing herself. "Not nearly as much as I love your brother, but I love my job. And he loved you, Ophelia, he loved you so much." She said with a gentle smile, eyes shining with tears. 

"He loved you, too," Ophelia managed to say finally, looking up at Callie. Callie couldn't help but notice how much Ophelia's eyes looked like Mark's. They crinkled in all the same spots, they were the same, gentle blue. "He called me, when you found out you were pregnant. He was so happy Callie, so, so happy." 

Callie got up from her chair on the other side of Mark's hospital bed, and came and sat beside Ophelia. "We'll get through this, Ophelia. We'll get through it together." 

"Lia," She said softly, looking at Callie with tears in her eyes. "He called me Lia."


	2. Chapter 2

And she had been there when he had his few good days. God, what good days they were. When he wasn't busy sleeping, or doped up on pain meds. "Lia!" He had said when he opened his eyes from a deep sleep, blinking a few times to make sure it was her. "What in the hell are you doing here?" 

"Remember that time you were in college and I tore my ACL in soccer?" She asked with a grin. 

"Of course, you were crying like a baby. Which, I remember you as, by the way, so I know what both were like. And they were exactly the same," he coughed out a laugh. 

"Exactly. You had hopped onto the first flight and met me at the hospital to make sure I was okay," she said with a grin, moving as close to his bed as she could, squeezing his hand. "Now it's my turn, to take care of you." 

"Psh, that's not your job!" He said, coughing lightly. "You're my baby sister." 

"How come you never told me you had a sister?" the curly haired boy said, strolling into the room with a clipboard in hand. "I had to meet Ophelia by waking up to find a stranger on the other side of your bed."

"Because," Mark said, wrapping his free arm around Ophelia's waist and pulling her so she was half perched on his bed. "We Sloan's are an attractive bunch, Jackson, I wouldn't want you stealing all her attention away from me." Ophelia couldn't help but blush, looking down at her hands.

Jackson Avery chuckled. "Alright, alright, fair enough." She could feel his ocean blue eyes studying her, but she didn't dare look up at him. "Ready to go over our cases then? If you're feeling up to it." Ophelia let them talk, occasionally giving her own opinions and suggestions. And she let them talk, she let them all talk, and she held onto the moments of them together.

She was still scared every time he went to sleep. She was afraid he would slip back into the state he had been in when she had arrived--like a vegetable, induced, not there, not-Mark. She knew the other doctors thought this was The Surge. The Surge was an event which often happened in terminally ill patients. They would have small days of huge improvement, before it all went down hill. Jackson told her every day he didn't think it was that. 

"Why don't you take her over to Joe's?" Mark suggested one night as Richard Webber was prepping Mark for bed. Jackson's eyes widened. 

"Take me to where now?" Ophelia asked her brother, smoothing his hair back from his forehead. 

"Joe's!" Mark exclaimed with a laugh, "I can't believe you haven't been to Joe's yet. It's the bar right across the street. Literally across the street. Best bar ever. We all go there. Take her Jackson, for me!" He gave one of his perfected Mark-Sloan pouts, and as worried as Ophelia felt leaving that glass ICU room, she knew it was a sealed deal the moment that pout crossed her brother's lips. He had always known how to get people to do exactly what he wanted them to do. 

So that's how Ophelia Sloan ended up sitting on a barstool next Jackson Avery, with a shot of tequila in hand, a lime wedge sitting on the napkin in front of her, and salt in the small hallow of her wrist. And Jackson, with his shy smile, clinked his shot glass against hers. "To the Sloan's," he said.

"To the motherfucking Sloan's!" Ophelia cheered back, already feeling the alcohol from her one light beer. She had barely had a thing to eat all day, so it wasn't too surprising. "So how did you and my brother become so close?" She asked him, after they had downed their shots. 

"Well, he calls us the plastics posse," Jackson said with a small laugh, taking a sip out of his can of beer. "I don't know why, honestly I hated it at first." 

The name made Ophelia's eyes widened, and a smile slipped over his face. "He called us that too," she admitted, "The two Sloan's, plastic posse, doctors at large. He had always wanted me to come work here but..." she stopped, trailing off, thinking back to a time she Had been in Seattle. "It just never worked out." she shrugged. 

"But you're here now," Jackson said with a smile, his pearly white teeth flashing ever so briefly. Ophelia was suddenly acutely aware of how much alcohol she had consumed, and the pressure of Jackson's warm hand just above her right knee. It was a good pressure, soft, gentle, protective. 

"I am, here now," she said with a nod and a smile of her own. "Thank you, for taking care of Mark. Really, it means the world to me," she said softly. Was he leaning closer towards her? She wasn't sure, she couldn't take her eyes off his lips. Oh yes, he was definitely getting closer to her. 

And then suddenly his pager alarmed and they split apart. Jackson looked down at the small black beeper, eyes widening. "It's Mark."


	3. Chapter 3

Ophelia flew around the corner, blue converse screeching on the floor. She flung herself around the glass door and collapsed into a chair next to his bed. "Mark, Mark, common, wake up," she muttered, grasping his hand, clutching onto it tightly. She never should have gone to the fucking bar. She should have stayed here. She should have been with him. "Wake up!" she said again, squeezing his hand tightly. Jackson stood behind her, placing his hands gently on her shaking shoulders. The glass doors slid open, and in walked Richard Weber, raising an eyebrow towards Avery. Flustered, Jackson stepped away from the Sloan girl. 

"Ophelia," Weber said gently, standing beside her. "Mark has fallen back into a coma state. Before this happened, he finished signing...his paperwork..." He said slowly, handing her a clipboard as he did so. 

Ophelia took the clipboard and slowly looked over it, her fingers tracing over her brother's inked signatures on several different lines which stated his medical wishes. Her eyes stopped on the one which read that after 30 days, if there was no sign of improvement, that he be taken off life support. A lump formed in her throat. "It doesn't matter," she choked out. "We won't have to wait 30 days. He will be fine again, I know it. We're family, I can tell." 

"I'm sure he will, Ophelia, I'm sure he will," Richard said, looking over at Jackson and giving a small shake of his head. It really did not look good, not even slightly. But, all they could do now was wait.

Ophelia spent every day and night by his bed. Meredith came by and sat with her. She didn't talk. She didn't try and make her talk. She just sat, brought her food, made her eat, and would leave. Jackson stayed his distance, and clearly felt awkward after the bar and everything which had happened. Ophelia didn't much want to talk to him anyways. If he had never agreed to take her to that bar...if they hadn't had those shots..maybe she would have been here. 

And the days passed. With every day, Ophelia lost more and more hope that Mark would wake up. On the 28th day, Weber took her aside. "You're not going to like what I'm about to say, but I'm going to say it." He began, and Ophelia was already furrowing her brow. "Even if Mark does wake up tomorrow, we're going to have a position open here at Seattle Grace, even if only temporarily. I would like to offer it to you, if you'll take it. Jackson will be in charge, but you two would work as a team. I've seen your work, Mark has raved about you. Even if your hands could only do half of what he did, you would be a gift to this hospital." 

Ophelia was surprised, and the shock must have played on her pale face. Out of habit, she instantly reached up to wrap a strand of her deep brown hair around her index finger, a nervous tick she had always had. 

"You don't have to decide right away," Richard continued. "Give it the next few days, we will see what happens, and you can let me know your final decision." 

Ophelia nodded. "Thank you," she managed to get out, "For the opportunity. I will let you know within the next few days." Could she really take her brother's position? Would he want her to? Would he be upset if he woke up and she was working by Avery, where he usually stood? "I need to..I need to get back to Mark now." 

When she sat back beside him, the room was empty. Looking around, she sat beside Mark and took his hand once more. It was warm, soft, like it always had been. "Mark, are you listening?" She asked softly. Since he had gone into the coma, she hadn't actually spoken to him. She couldn't bring herself to do so. But now, she couldn't stop herself. "I hope you are. Feels like you are, feels like we're talking over the phone like we do every Wednesday night," she smirked, kissing the back of his hand. 

"Richard offered me a job...your job. Here, in Seattle. I think, when you come back, he'll let me stay, too." She said, brushing back his soft grey hair. "Just think. The plastics posse. Now a three man team. All here at Seattle Grace. Would you like that?" She smiled down at her elder brother. "Think of how much trouble it would be having two Sloan's right here in this hospital? God it'd be an uproar. But we would have so much fun." She felt the tears brimming at her eyes and she reached up, wiping them away before they could fall. "I might take it Mark, I really might. But I want it to be okay with you. I need to hear you say it, so please wake up.Wake up and tell me we're still the posse." She wiped vigorously at the tears, flicking them off her cheeks. 

Suddenly, she heard shuffling and looked up at the door, where Jackson stood, leaning against the frame, just watching her. Her cheeks flamed red. "What are you doing here?" She asked, almost angrily, embarrassed. 

"Nothing, nothing, I just came to check up on Mark, I didn't," he trailed off, pressing his lips together. "I didn't want to interrupt your moment. You haven't..." he paused again, stepping into the room and moving to the chair beside him. "I haven't seen you talk to him since he went into the coma. I didn't want you to stop on my account. It's good, for you, and for him." He looked down at his hands, his cheeks just the slightest hint of pink. Or was she just imagining that? 

"Well, we're all done talking now. I've said everything I've needed to say," she said stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest. She was not about to let Jackson hear all her personal stories she wanted to share with her brother. And it was none of his business knowing she was about to get a job there. Maybe. Unless she said no. She could always run home till NYC if things went badly. Her hand reflexively went to her hair to curl a strand around her finger. 

"There's only two days left..." Jackson said quietly, looking at Mark. His friend, his mentor. This was the fucking worst. He glanced over at Lia. There was a lot of Mark in her, from what she'd seen of her sparky attitude, to her eyes. 

"Don't you think I know that?" Ophelia said with a frown, glowering over at Jackson. "It's fine. He's got two days to wake back up. Which he will. I can feel it." 

"I believe you," Jackson said with a smile, but she could tell he was lying.

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Two days later at 5pm, she found herself with her head buried in the blankets of his bed, sobbing, as his life support was removed. Callie was there. Derek was there. And they all waited. It felt like Lia's entire heart was being ripped right out of her chest. A part of her was going missing with him slowly leaving them. It was the worst agony she had ever felt. And when his monitor finally gave a slow beep, signaling his heart had stopped pumping, Ophelia tore out of the room, sprinting past Jackson, past Mer, past everyone, until she was out of the building, and she just kept running. She ran and ran until she reached his apartment building and until she was in his room and until she buried her face in his blankets and surrounded herself with the smell of her brother. Nothing was going to be okay again.


	4. Chapter 4

The pastor in charge of the service began to speak. The soft hand in hers squeeze softly again, massaging at the base of her thumb. She slowly turned her head and looked to her left. There were those piercing blue eyes and that caramel skin. His eyes were as bloodshot as her own. She looked down at their hands, then back up at him, her lower lip trembling. He nodded once, and she collapsed against him, crying into his shoulder as he held her. 

Neither of them could hear the words of the pastor, not over Callie's sobs, not over the blood rushing through their ears. It was impossible to believe this had happened. Lia had been staying at Mark's apartment, and she kept thinking she would be rudely awoken in the middle of the night by Mark, either carrying a pizza or a woman. It never happened. Lia lifted her trembling head enough to watch them lower Mark's casket into the ground, with a dull thud against the soft earth below. That was that. Her brother was gone and buried. All she had left was his memory and an empty apartment. 

She wasn't entirely sure how they ended up at Joe's, but they all ended up there, every last doctor who wasn't on shift. Rounds were on the house, in memory of Mark Sloan. "I haven't seen you around here before," the bartender said, washing out a glass. "Name's Joe, what's yours?" 

Lia looked up from the mixed drink she was drowning herself in. "My name's Ophelia. Ophelia Sloan." 

"Sloan?" Joe said, the gears slowly clicking into place as his bushy brown eyebrows furrowed. "Shit. Lia Sloan. He spoke about you a lot, you know? So proud of you." He slid a shot of clear alcohol down the bar towards her. "On me." 

She nodded at him with a smile and downed the shot as someone cranked the music pouring out of the speakers. Mark had never wanted a sad funeral. He had wanted celebration. A remembrance of everything great he had done. And looking at the way the strangers here were all knocking back drinks, laughing, and sharing stories, her brother would have absolutely loved this. He could almost picture him sitting on the stool beside her, one arm used to prop himself up, wiggling his eyebrows with that childish grin on his face. 'Go dance, Lia,' she could practically hear him saying, 'Look at poor Jackson over there, bored out of his mind with those interns. Go get him, drag him out there. Do it for me, Lia.' And she couldn't help but laugh. It was like he was still Right There, talking to her, egging her on like he always did. 

"Fine," she whispered. "But only for you, Mark." She slid off her barstool, setting her drink down on the bar as gently as she could. The alcohol had definitely hit her, but she didn't care. Who here wasn't a bit intoxicated, really? And so she wove her way over to Jackson Avery with the beautiful eyes and tapped his shoulder. 

He turned, slightly surprised to see her, but definitely not at all upset to have his attention stolen from the interns who were droning on about hospital gossip. "Lia, what's up?" He asked, "Everything okay," He took a sip out of the beer in his hand. She looked good, all things considered, in her short black dress and small string of white pearls, and those tiny heels that clicked whenever she walked. And her eyes. It was her eyes that got him. Blue, like Mark's, but so much warmer. 

"Everything is great," Lia said, nervously wrapping her hair around her index finger. "I just got to thinking about what Mark would want, if he were here, and well. He would want me to dance. So here I am, asking you, to come dance with me." She felt embarrassed the moment the words left her lips, but she wasn't wrong. It's what Mark would want. And a little bit, admittedly, what Lia wanted. Especially when he was standing there in a white button up shirt, the top two buttons undone, and the skinny, black tie loosened around his neck. 

"You want to go dance?" Jackson said, surprised, finishing his beer and setting the empty can on the table beside him. 

"Is that a yes?" She asked with a demure smile.

"Oh, it's a yes."


	5. Chapter 5

Ophelia woke with a pounding headache. Groggy. Everything hurt, but mostly her head. God, how much had she had to drink last night? She had certainly celebrated her brother in true Sloan fashion. With a deep sigh, she pulled the heavy blankets up around her shoulders and sunk back into the bed, smiling softly. She was perfectly content to stay in bed absolutely all day long. 

And then, from behind her, came a strong, male arm, wrapping around her waist and pulling her back towards him. Lia froze. Who the hell. Who the hell was in her bed? Was it her bed? She pried her eyes open just a sliver to look at the colour of her sheets. Definitely not. Definitely not her bed. Lia fought the urge to groan. She really was a Sloan. The next step to was to figure out who she was in fact in bed with, and how to get out as quickly and quietly as possible without him ever finding out. Or she could go back to sleep and maybe some nice guy would make her a nice breakfast and she wouldn't have to have stale cereal by herself. 

As tantalizing as that idea was, she preferred her one night stands to stay in the night. So she waited a few minutes to make sure his heavy breathing was the breath of heavy, hungover sleep. And then she gently lifted up his arm, ever so slightly, and slipped a pillow beneath his heavy hand. Instantly, she dropped off the side of the bed to the ground and scrambled for her clothes, her blank nylons, her bra and panties, her black funeral dress, and quickly threw them on. Her shoes. Where the fuck were her shoes?? Well, it's not like they were the fanciest of shoes. She would leave them behind. Walk-of-shame it all the way outside to grab a taxi. Before she left the room, she paused, turned, and peeked at the man wrapped in blankets in the large king sized bed, and blanched. She knew that caramel skin. That curly, black hair. Fuck. With that, she turned and ran, not caring how loud the door slammed behind her.

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"Hello, is this Doctor Richard Weber?" Lia asked softly into her cellphone as she carefully poured two ibuprofens out of the small plastic bottle. 

"This is he. What may I help you with?" Replied the familiar, warm voice. 

"Good morning Richard, this is Lia. Ophelia Sloan. I was just calling you back about your job offer. I..." She paused, trailing off. She had meant to say 'I appreciate the offer but this isn't the right time.' but she couldn't make the words come out. They stuck in her throat like dry bread. "I'd like to accept it." Was what came out instead. "I want to work where...I want to work where he worked." 

"I'm glad you came to that conclusion, Lia," Weber said, and she could hear him smiling over the phone, that gentle, knowing smile. "It will be good to still see the Sloan name up there on the board." Lia's heart was beating out of her chest. "If you want to come in either today or tomorrow, we'll fill out the paperwork, and you can start first thing on Monday." Monday. She had one day to prepare. 

"I'll bring everything you need tomorrow morning. Thanks again, Richard." Lia said, and she meant it. This would be good. There was no more running to be done, not from the things in her past, not from the weight of her brother's death. Staying here would keep him alive for her. And she would figure out how exactly to acknowledge Jackson later. They had been drunk, it had been nothing, nothing really, but a foolish mistake.

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Sunday night, Mer had asked her to come to the settlement meeting. "I don't know if I'm ready," Lia admitted over the phone. 

"I get it," Mer said, nodding. "But I think your perspective would be really good. As Mark's next of kin, you get a vote in this settlement. But I don't blame you, for feeling like you can't go. I get it."

"You lost your sister, right?" Lia asked quietly. "The girl Mark was in love with." 

"Yes, Lexie, my baby sister. She was good, Lia, rarely, genuinely, good." Meredith took in a deep breath. "And now she's gone, and we have to choose if we settle or not. So I understand, and I understand you not wanting to go." 

"Can you...maybe just fill me in afterwords, and I'll come to the deciding meeting?" Ophelia asked as she looked through her closet for what she might wear the next day. Her first day. 

"I can do that, for you," Mer replied quickly. "You're not leaving till this is over, right?" 

"Actually..." Lia trailed off, grabbing a pair of black slacks that would make her ass look good. "I'm not leaving for a while. Weber offered me a job. I've got my dark blue scrubs on the bed right in front of me now."

Meredith could hear the smile in the younger girl's voice and couldn't help but smile herself. "That's great, Lia. I think you'll fit in here. Well, you'll fit in with me at least. Just don't let them give you any shit. See you tomorrow then?" 

"I'll see you tomorrow," Lia affirmed before hanging up. Tomorrow, Monday. She would be walking into that attending's office in her navy blue scrubs, dark mahogany hair curled just so slightly, bright eyed and bushy tailed. Well, the last part maybe not so much. And she would work right where her brother worked, carry his legacy, and hopefully, hear the stories, the little things, she had missed out on while she had spent her time in NYC.


	6. Chapter 6

Meredith had waited outside the hospital for Ophelia early on that brisk, Seattle morning. "There you are," she said with a motherly smile, extending a cup of coffee towards the brunette. "You're going to need this, Dr. Sloan. It's a ocean in there, and I'm not about to let you get thrown to the sharks on your first day." 

"Ohmygod, thank you," Lia said earnestly, taking the cup and swallowing a large swig. Coffee. That was all she had needed to make her morning a million times better. "So, shall we?" She asked, trying to be as positive as possible. 

"We shall," Mer said with a nod. "I'll take you to the attending's room first, you can settle in, put away your lunch, meet some people." And with that, they were off, Meredith steering her through the halls and up the elevator. Mer felt good having someone new to show around, someone who she actually sort of liked. With Christina gone, there was this emptiness, dullness in the halls. No one to run to with the latest news. No one to complain with. No one else to be dark and twisty. And she had a feeling that Ophelia knew exactly how to be dark and twisty. It was something in her eyes. 

The Attending's Lounge was a large, crowded room, with a small table for snacking, but was mostly covered in medical texts, and cupboards for dishes, and a large, shiny fridge for food. Lia quickly deposited her mac and cheese into the fridge and returned to Mer's side. 

"Lia, this is Dr. Bailey," Meredith said, pushing her towards a short, black woman with a curled bob, who was muttering about something as she flipped through the pages of a large book. "Miranda, this is Ophelia Sloan. She'll be a new Plastics Attending here." 

"Sloan?" Dr. Bailey said looking up from her book. "Oh, poor thing. You're Mark's sister, aren't you?" She held out her hand for Lia to shake. 

"That's me. You can call me Lia though, if you don't want to use the last name." She smiled sincerely as she shook the shorter woman's hand. She had a firm grip, the kind that filled you with comfort, the knowledge that she could handle herself.

As they were introducing, the door burst open and in walked a handsome doctor who was around Meredith's age, maybe a year or two younger, with short brown hair, a slight bit of beard growing, and a tiny bit of food stuck in said beard.

"Morning Alex, look who's here," Mer said, grabbing his arm before he sat down and steering him towards Lia. "Alex, Lia Sloan, Lia, this is Alex Karev. He's a bit of a man whore. But we love him anyways. Please don't sleep with him unless you want everyone in the hospital to hear about it." 

Lia shook his hand and he winked at her as he did so. "You'll only hear good things, of course," he said with a slight chuckle. 

Lia recognized him from the funeral, and the reception afterwords. He hadn't spoken a word to her, but he had been there, she was pretty sure. "Noted." she replied flatly, withdrawing her hand and wiping it off on her white lab coat. Karev then sat down at the table next to Bailey, and began to open a bag with a sandwhich in it, and eat. 

Just then, a flaming redhead whirled into the room, "Ohmygoodness, I can't believe we're in the Attending's Office!!" she gushed, dragging a suitcase behind her. 

"April...?" Meredith asked, confused. The redhead whirled to face her. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"Oh, Hunt gave me my job back. He came to the farm, right down there while I was feeding a pig, and offered me my job back! Who are you?" The words flew out of her mouth all in one sentence, each line floating into the next. She raised one thin, red eyebrow at Lia. 

"I'm Ophelia Sloan, Plastics," Lia said, extending her hand. 

April's eyes widened. "Sloan? Ohmygod, ohmygod I'm so sorry." Instead of shaking her hand, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms tightly around her, rocking her back and forth. "You'll be okay," she said, releasing her and patting her cheek, causing Lia's face to flame red with embarrassment. 

To only make things worse, at that moment, Jackson Avery entered the Lounge. Lia immediately turned away and headed for the fridge. Caffeine. She needed caffeine. 

"April?" She heard him say, confused, "What are you doing here?" 

"Hunt gave her her job back," Mer offered up from her seat at the table, "We think she might of imagined it." 

"No, no it's real!" April said defensively. "I'm here, I'm back. I, uh, thought you were leaving the hospital?" 

"Yea, well, I didn't," Jackson said, throwing on his scrubs. 

There was really only so long Lia could stay with her head in the fridge. Grabbing her can of Mountain Dew, she cracked it open as quietly as possible and turned around. Instantly, Jackson's blue eyes locked on her. "Lia...?" She could see the display of emotions play across his face. Surprise. Anger. Excitement. Complete confusion. 

"Good morning, Dr. Avery," she said formally with a nod, as she pushed past him towards the door. "Meredith, I'm heading out to chat with Weber quick. We'll catch up later?" The door swung shut behind her before she could hear a response. This was going to be a long, long day.

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Ophelia's first case was going to be with Jackson, of course. Weber said it was simply to get her used to the way things ran around Seattle Grace. It was a patient who was having a hernia repair and some plastic surgery. Ophelia entered the room quietly and moved to stand beside him, head down, studying her clipboard. 

"Roxie Meyers, 30, here for excess skin removal after a 100-pound weight loss two years ago," the intern said, reading off her own papers. 

"And we've set up a consult for the hernia repair?" Jackson asked the intern.

"Yes, we did," she replied with a quick nod. The door opened, and in entered the overly excited redhead from early. 

"It's me, I'm it," April Kepner said, noticeably more nervous that she had been earlier. 

"Ohh, okay. Okay then," Jackson said, hands on his hips. Lia looked back and forth between the two of them, squinting her eyes. Something was going on, for sure. She just hadn't been here to hear about it. The tension was palpable. 

After Ms. Meyer's fiance had left the room, Roxie took off her bright purple robe. "Alright," Jackson said, making marks on her stomach with a permanent marker. "We're going to start with incisions here, and here, okay?" He showed the patient carefully as he drew the small marks. "Dr. Sloan, does this look appropriate to you?" 

Lia studied the chart on her clipboard, then the marks Jackson had drawn on. "Yes, Dr. Avery. Looks accurate to me." She turned to the patient. "Do you have any questions before the surgery?" She asked with a warm smile. 

"Just one," The patient said, slightly giddy. "When?" 

"When, what?" Lia asked, confused. 

"Oh, sorry, Lia, you're new to this case, you must not know the patient history yet," Jackson said bluntly, "She wants to know when-"

Ms. Meyer's cut Jackson off, "I want to know when I can jump Frank's bones." And then she laughed, nervous, giddy, excited. Like a young school girl. 

Lia smiled, folding her hands. "Just two weeks and your incisions will be healed," she said with a nod. The woman's excitement was contagious. 

"Two weeks?" Roxie breathed, "Oh God, I just got goosebumps. Two weeks." It was like a daydream, finally coming into reality. 

After they finished the briefing for the surgery which would follow in a few hours, April rushed out of the room almost as quickly as Lia did. "Sorry!" both girls blurted as they bumped into one another. 

"Lia!" Jackson called, following at a brisk walk behind her. "Ophelia Sloan, stop running away from me!" He called down the hall, Lia's cheeks flaring red as she pushed into a closet and shut the door. Moments later, he entered the supply closet behind her. "Is that your plan?" He asked, clearly angry, "To just ignore me forever, when we're working together?" 

"I'm not ignoring you," She said, crossing her arms over her chest, "Just applying a little professional courtesy." 

"Professional courtesy?" He asked, stepping towards her. She could practically feel his annoyance rolling off him in waves. "Is that what you're going to call Saturday night now, too?" He kept walking towards her till her back was against the wall and he was less than a foot away. 

"That was...that was..." she couldn't quite get the right words out, not with him so close by. Not when she could smell his aftershave, that spicy scent, the same smell his bed sheets had. Not when she closed her eyes and could feel his lips on hers, his hands running over her bare skin, slapping her ass, biting her neck. 

"That's what I thought," he said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. God, how she wanted to reach up and run her hands through his curls. She bit her lower lip, looking away for a moment. "Now, we can either talk about what happened like adults, or you can keep running away. And I know Sloan's, they don't run that easily." 

"Okay, okay then we'll talk about it," Lia agreed with a nod, "But can we do it when you're not standing so close to me?" She asked, timidly. 

"And why's that?" Jackson asked, a small grin trying to tug at the corners of his lips.

"Because you're distracting, it makes it hard not to..." she trailed off, looking up at him, tracing his lips with her eyes.

"Makes it hard not to what?" he asked, now just teasing her, egging her on.

"Makes it hard not to do this," she replied, standing on her tip toes and pressing her lips against his once more. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her close, as she bit at his lower lip. For a minute, it was nothing but heat, running their hands underneath scrubs, searching for bare skin to kiss, until they heard a rattling at the door and the handle click. 

They sprang apart. "This is a conversation we're continuing later, you understand me," Jackson said, throwing on a stern voice, pointing towards her, as Alex Karev entered the closet in search for supplies. He raised an eyebrow quizzically at both of them, but Jackson was out of the room before Alex could ask any questions. 

"Wow, getting lectured already?" Karev asked as he searched the shelves. 

"Oh shut up Karev," Lia said as she pushed past him, "Go fuck an intern."


	7. Chapter 7

Lia stood looking at the surgery board, using the neatly printed letters and perfectly arranged surgeries to calm her down. Her mind kept trying to push back to the moment in the supply closet. What sort of moment _was_ it? Clearly he remembered what had happened that weekend between them as well. She was still trying to figure out if that was a good thing or not. 

But watching the board didn't stop the time from slowly slipping away, the very little time that she had left until she had to rejoin her teammates. 

Sighing, Lia spun on her heel she begun to walk off towards the Attendings office where Jackson most likely would be, prepping, going over details of their plan. Without including her. 

As she approached the door, she reached for her badge to scan and enter, when she could hear raised voices from inside. Suddenly, Jackson burst out of the doors, pushing past her. He didnt even stop to acknowledge her when he nearly knocked her to the ground. Lia was so dumbfounded she didnt even have a second to yell at him for being rude before her had disappeared. 

Peeking inside the office, she saw April, face red from either holding back tears, or frustration, she didn't know her well enough to know the difference. Carefully, Lia shut the door and sighed. Something was going on between those two, a something that she had now firmly jammed himself in the middle of. 

But she was a Sloan, not some petty intern. She wasnt a rebound girl, or a second choice, and she was going to make damn sure Jackson knew this. Frankly, Lia wasnt even sure what was going on between Jackson and herself yet, but she knew it wasnt playing waiting game on him to figure out who he wanted. 

Thankfully, she didnt have anything she needed inside of that stupid office anyways. Stalking over to the elevator, she pushed the down button angrily. She was going home. Maybe this had been a bad idea afterall. 

 

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With annoyance, Ophelia found herself getting up extra early to prepare for the day. She brewed herself some coffee and curled her black hair into large barrel curls that cascaded over her shoulders. While she only put on a light makeup, she made sure her mascara and brows were on point, before donning her kitten heels and black slacks that always made her ass look fine. She paired the ensemble with a maroon, low cut blouse. She was no second choice but she was prepared to become a lot of guys' first. 

With a devilish grin, she swiped some faint gloss over her lips and slung Mark's old leather jacket over her shoulder, before disappearing out the door.

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Humming her way down the halls, she slipped into the Attending's office, fresh cup of coffee in hand. Her coworkers were already there, bustling about, as Mer was facetiming another doctor, someone named Cristina, whom Lia would come to find was Mer's best friend. 

Carefully, Lia slid her bag into a cubby, the one she was decidedly claiming as her own, and began to take off her blouse, revealing her black and gold lace bra, as she slowly pulled on the top of her scrubs. She could feel a silence in the room as all of the men, and some of the women, turned to watch her. 

"Hey, hey now!" Dr Bailey called out from her spot at the table. "We dont just bare our chests out here for everyone to see, we're not interns for God's sake!" 

"My bad, Dr Bailey," Lia said innocently as she sauntered by, making her way towards the door. "I'll remember that for next time. New place and all." She let the door shut behind her with a resounding 'click' as she made her way to the OR she would be working in today. 

Lia always liked to get a lay of the land before she ever operated on anyone. Liked to scrub in extra early and make sure all her tools were in place, that the energy felt right. It made her feel as if the odds of a successful surgery were far more likely. 

So she scrubbed in early, while the nurses were still setting up, and she sat and watched them as they did so, noting where they placed certain tools and asking them to place others in a specific order. 

It wasnt long before the others joined her as their patient from the day before was wheeled in. Lia was surprised to see Mer, though. 

"What are you doing here?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at her new friend. "Please don't say they sent you to babysit me. I dont need watching." 

"Sent to babysit, yes. You? Hell no." Mer grinned. Lia could tell the woman was grinning even beneath her mask, because the corners of her eyes always crinkled up in this incredibly warm way. Motherly, some might say. "They want me watching over Kepner. This is her first surgery in a few months." 

"A few months??" Lia whispered back, shocked. "Why so long?" 

"Well, she was fired. She hasnt been practicing until Dr Hunt invited her back," Mer explained. "I'm sure she's perfectly capable, I'm just here to observe and provide and extra set of hands when needed. I'm going to be her intern." 

"Sounds like so much fun," Lia replied sarcastically. "Suppose we should get this show on the road then." Clapping her gloved hands together, she stood up, moving to her place beside the patient. Jackson stood beside her, and she could feel his gaze on her. 

"Hope you're feeling in a better mood today, Dr Avery," Lia said in greeting, not looking at him. 

"What do you mean?" Jackson asked back, his brow furrowing with confusion. 

"Oh, you dont remember? Thats fine," Lia said, asking the scrub nurse for a scalpel. "You barreled on out of the office yesterday and practically bowled me to the ground. Didnt even stop to say goodbye." She said her words so nonchalantly, but Meredith could tell she was annoyed. 

If Jackson replied, Lia didnt hear him. She was in focus mode now, for it was time to make the first cut. The first cut of her hospital career here, at her brother's hospital. She took a deep breath, and drew the incision mark exactly as they had discussed. Now, it was work time. 

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The tension between April and Jackson was still palpable, and it was irritating as hell to deal with during the surgery.

"Mesh please, and some suction," April requested as she worked on the hernia repare. 

"Here's a thought," Jackson suggested, his voice like nails on a chalk board to Lia at this point. "What if we just pretended the patient was never sick? Never even had this hernia to begin with? Then you wouldn't even need to do this surgery." 

April scoffed. "Jackson, please. You're being a bit immature here, this patient's life isnt a joke to me." 

"Oh I'm the immature one, am I?" Jackson countered, snipping at a stitch he had just finished completing for Lia. 

"Umm, what are we discussing here?" Meredith asked, throwing out the question that she and Dr Sloan were both wondering the answer to. "Because it doesn't exactly sound like we're talking about the patient. That all of our hands are inside of."

"Ohmygod, it happened," April said with a frustrated sigh. "I'm just starting over now, Jackson." 

"By acting like it never happened," he countered, handing a scalpel to Lia's awaiting hand. 

"Okay, okay, what never happened?" Lia asked, stopping her work for a second and looking at the two other doctors. This arguing was disruptive and, frankly, dangerous. 

"Nothing!" They protested in unison, April's fare skinned cheeks flairing up rosey red. 

"Oh..." Meredith said, filling the silence. "You have got to be kidding me. You didn't," she threw her last two words at Jackson. 

"Didnt what?" Lia asked, exasperated. 

"Lia, Dr Kepner here was saving herself till marriage. For the right man. Was, being the key word here apparently, thanks to Dr Avery." Meredith explained sternly. 

The sound of metal clattering to the floor filled the room. Lia had dropped her scalpel to the ground. She looked down at her feet, and the blood droplets on the floor. "Oh. Wow. I'm such a klutz," she muttered. "Can someone get me a new scalpel please?" 

"Ophelia," Jackson began, but Lia held up one gloved finger, silencing him. 

"Frankly, Dr Avery, your drama isn't wanted here, in my OR. I am trying to complete a surgery. I dont want to hear about your defiling of a virgin or whatever other problems you're creating that keep me from focusing. On. My. Job." Lia said pointedly and clearly, not even bothering to look up at him as the nurse placed a new scalpel in her hand. 

"Is that understood?" She barked out finally, when no one spoke. 

"Yes, Dr Sloan, I hear you loud and clear." Jackson replied through gritted teeth. How the hell had he gotten himself in this situation to begin with? 

"Good. Now lets wrap this up. I've got things to work on." Lia snapped, focusing solely on the patient in front of her, even though inside, her blood was boiling.


	8. Chapter 8

Ophelia stormed out of the OR once her surgery was finished. Of course, she made sure her patient was stable, all sewn up, everything back in its place as it should be, then she stormed out of that room, thunder rolling in her wake. She had no time for petty arguments like this, no time to be stuck between two people, no desire to be a rebound. Lia had always known her worth, and knew she was worth more than this. How dare he use the death of her brother to take advantage of her for some stupid rebound? There was low, and she had experienced low, but this was a new level. It was disgusting, despicable. And all because Avery was pining over some girl whose virginity he took.

"Ophelia!" she heard his voice call out behind her as her heel clicks echoed down the empty hall. She didn't stop, she didn't turn to look. She had no care to hear what he was saying. She could hear his footsteps running up behind her, but she ignored them. "Dr. Sloan, how many times have I told you, you can't just keep running away from me!"

Lia had just about had it being told what she could or couldn't do, should or shouldn't do. She whirled around in the hallway, coming face to face with Jackson. In a low whisper, or at least what she thought was a whisper, she said very quickly. "Dr. Avery, you hear me, and you hear me good. What I do or don't do has absolutely, I repeat, absolutely, no influence by what you do, or don't do. Or who. How dare you think that you can come chasing after me after what you've done. Honestly, how dare you." At this point, she was yelling, but she frankly didn't give a fuck. "You think Mark would be happy about this?" She could feel the tears in her eyes and hear just the slightest break in her voice, but she kept pushing on. "No, he wouldn't be. You say he's your mentor and then you go and treat me the way you have. Mark would be so disappointed in you. But he's not here, is he? So my disappointment will have to do." She jabbed her finger into his chest to accentuate her words, make sure he truly understood just how upset she was. One of the tears in her eyes pooled and spilled over the edge, slipping silently down her cheek. She let it fall, not wanting to move, not wanting to breathe. 

He stared down at her with those beautiful, beautiful blue eyes of his and she thought for a second her might not be able to speak again, even if she wanted to. She could feel the electricity between them, almost as if it were a physical thing. "Dr. Sloan," he started to say, his lips forming her name perfectly. She thought for a second he might kiss her, and she took a step back.

"Now get back to work, get the hell out of my face," she said quietly, whipping the betraying tear off of her face. For a moment, he didn't move, and she didn't look up to see until she heard his footsteps fading away from her. When she finally did, she saw April and Meredith standing in the doorway, Mer with a sad look on her face, April's cheeks red with...what? Confusion? Anger? Lia didn't know, and didn't care. She shook her head at Mer, a silent signal that she would fill her in later, then turned on her heel and slowly walking away. She needed a smoke, and she hadn't needed a smoke in a long, long time. She and Mark had quit together. Being doctors and all. She knew it was so, so bad for her. Knew it was poisonous to her body, knew she was betraying herself. Her fingers twitched as she hit the button for the elevator, as she fought the idea to walk down the street to the gas station, buy a pack, and smoke the entire thing. It had been so long since a craving, she didn't want to break it now.

 

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Ophelia was sitting in the stairwell, head resting in her hands, when Mer entered carrying an iPad. Lia looked up at her, shook her head, and took a sip of the coffee she had chosen over a fresh pack of cigarettes. She wasn't about to allow a man to cause her to relapse into something she had quick long ago. "Dr. Sloan," Mer greeted, stepping forward and sitting on a step beside her.

Lia let out a groan. "Don't 'Dr. Sloan' me, Mer. No formalities, please." She looked out the window beside them. "I can't handle that right now, not from you." 

Mer sighed. "Lia, I don't know exactly what happened back there, but I know it's got you pretty frazzled." She watched the younger doctor tap her cup lightly against her knee. "I _was_ going to FaceTime Cristina," Meredith continued, "But you look like you need to talk. I'm not going to force you, but I'm here if you want."

Lia sighed, spinning her cup slowly in her hands, looking at the tiny green logo. "It's complicated....I used to just be able to go to Mark. He was my person, you know? I could go to him about anything, everything, and now..."

"Now you can't," Mer finished for her. "I understand exactly what you mean. But I also have a feeling this is about a lot more than Mark being gone." She gave the doctor a look, raising one eyebrow. "And again, I'm listening. I'm not here to judge you. I know how terrible it can feel thinking you're in a situation and you can't speak with anyone else about it." 

"Jackson...." Lia began, trying to think of the best way to phrase it. "April wasn't the only person Jackson slept with recently." She paused, glancing at Meredith for a reaction. The brunette simply raised her eyebrows ever so slightly, but stayed silent, allowing her to carry on. "It was after Mark's funeral, at the bar, the after party, where it all started. We were drinking, dancing, one thing lead to another....And he was looking at me with those damn eyes of his like I was the only person important on the entire planet. And I just feel so stupid." She paused, setting her cup down on the stair beside her with finality. "I'm just. I'm not a rebound girl, you know? I'm a Sloan. Not our thing. And to find out the only reason he's been chasing me around these past few days is because he can't get over some dumb girl he deflowered pisses me off." 

Mer sighed, leaning back against the step behind them. "I understand that being frustrating as hell. Jackson...he's not a bad guy, honestly. Maybe a little confused right now, but from my experience, men often are. He doesn't know what he really wants, because they never seem to. You have to show him what you want, and take it from there. Because, frankly, Ophelia. He'd be a complete idiot for not wanting to be with you. If that is what you decide you want." 

Ophelia looked out the window again, watching a small bluejay fly lazily by, floating until it landed on a branch. "I don't know what I want." 

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When Ophelia went back to check up on Roxie and see how she was feeling, she was surprised to see April and Jackson already there, helping her out of bed so she could look at herself in the mirror. Ophelia stood outside the door for a moment, wondering if she should intrude. She shook the idea off. She was lead on this case now, the patient was her responsibility. She wasn't going to let them make her feel uncomfortable in her own place of work. 

She pushed through the door, bright smile plastered to her lips so hard that it made her lips hurt. "Roxie! You're up and moving! That's so good to see. How are you feeling?" She asked, her gaze only flickering from her patient over towards Jackson for a second. He was staring right back at her. She swallowed hard, but kept her smile on. 

"I'm feeling so good, Dr. Sloan. I can't wait to see that mirror," she replied, as April and Jackson guided her over to the glass so she could spy at her own reflection. She looked at herself, a smile rippling across her cheeks so bright it could replace the sun. She patted her stomach gently, feeling for the skin they had removed, searching for something that wasn't there. "Oh my god, you did it. You really did," she choked out, tears spilling down her cheeks out of happiness. "I just. I never thought." She turned to face Ophelia. "Thank you, Dr. Sloan, from the bottom of my heart. Thank you." 

Ophelia couldn't help but smile back at her, truthfully. Happy to see her patient was doing okay, she bid them all goodbye and went to take a nap. It had been a long day, and she had some thinking to do. 

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When she woke up later, Ophleia knew what she was going to do. She had to go find Jackson, apologize for her outburst, and tell him what she was thinking, what she was feeling. If only she had liquid courage, that's what she needed right now. A shot to pound. Too bad, she was just going to have to do it on her own.

She moved through the halls, checking rooms for him, but he was nowhere to be found. It was late, perhaps he had already headed home. She pulled out her phone to text him, when suddenly a door opened and he stepped out, still dressed for work. She looked up, and smiled at him. "Jackson, I was looking everywhere for you."

He looked up at her, eyes widening, looking like a startled gazelle. His blue eyes were as piercing as ever, even in the dim halls. "Ophelia, I-"

She cut him off, placing a finger to his lips to silence him. "I needed to talk to you, I needed to say I'm sorry, for earlier. It wasn't right. I was...I was shocked, honestly. Hurt, a bit, too. Because it felt like you were so upset about her that you....forgot about anything that might have been happening between us and that was...annoying. Frustrating. I'm not anyone's second choice. I don't want to be your second choice, Jackson. Whatever...whatever is happening between us is powerful, palpable, and I don't want to just give up on that, ok? I want to keep seeing whats going on between us. I haven’t felt like this in...a long time. And I haven’t ever felt so instantly connected to anyone. I don't want there to be anyone else. I want you, and me, and that's all." She breathed heavily, removing her finger from his lips, giving him the chance to speak. 

It felt like her world was stopping, as he opened his mouth to speak, when suddenly, from behind him, the door opened again, and April rushed out, holding a white undershirt in her hands. “Jackson you forgot...” she stopped short, catching sight of Ophelia.

The raven haired girl looked at April, the shirt, then Jackson, slowly doing the math. “I’m....I’m sorry, I made a mistake, coming here. I’ve got to go.” She spin on her heel and rushed off down the hall, not even caring that others watched her run away from her problems.


End file.
